Rotary device

ABSTRACT

A rotary expansible chamber device having a casing of primarily circular cross section modified by peripherally spaced pockets of circular cross section; a rotary piston in the primary circular cross section of the casing has blades radially extending therefrom of epicycloidal shape, the tips of which are closely adjacent the primary surface of the casing. Cylindrical locks in each pocket are rotated synchronously with the piston and have recesses which receive the blade tips. Inlet passages extend from the hollow center of the piston through the rear faces of the blades, and outlet passages extend through the front faces of the blades to the hollow center of the piston, the hollow piston center being divided into inlet and outlet spaces. In a modification, the piston is axially shiftable to vary the working chamber volume.

United States Patent 958,416 5/1910 Metcalfetal lnventors Julian Franciszek Mnjkowski Mila; Zdzislaw Rymrd Przybylski, Polna, both of, Poland Appl. No. 793,412 Filed Jan. 23, 1969 Patented June 15, 1971 Assignee Zaklady Mechanizzne Tar-now," Tar-now, Kochanowskiego, Poland Priority Feb. 3, 1968, Mar. 1, 1968 Poland P124892 and P125557 ROTARY DEVICE 7 Claims, 4 Drawing Figs.

US. Cl 418/28, 418/187, 418/196 Int. Cl. ..F0lc 21/16, F01c 1/20 Field of Search 103/120, 120 A, 125;230/150; 123/13 B; 91/81, 92, 75; 418/28, 187,196

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS Primary Examiner-Carlton R. Croyle Assistant Examiner-Wilbur J. Goodlin Attorneylrvin A. Lavine ABSTRACT: A rotary expansible chamber device having a casing of primarily circular cross section modified by peripherally spaced pockets of circular cross section; a rotary piston in the primary circular cross section of the casing has blades radially extending therefrom of epicycloidal shape, the tips of which are closely adjacent the primary surface of the casing. Cylindrical locks in each pocket are rotated synchronously with the piston and have recesses which receive the blade tips. Inlet passages extend from the hollow center of the piston through the rear faces of the blades, and outlet passages extend through the front faces of the blades to the hollow center of the piston, the hollow piston center being divided into inlet and outlet spaces. in a modification, the piston is axially shiftable to vary the-working chamber volume.

PATENTEDJUMSIHYI 3584984 SHEET 1 [1F 4 ATENTEH Jun. 51971 SHEET h UF 4 ROTARY DEVICE There are known numerous swirl-piston devices, such as for instance: Wankl, Radziwill or Rozycki internal combustion engines in a variety of modifications, Weinberger system, Breelle and Marshall internal combustion engines, Hartmann hydraulic motors, as well as a number of other rotational arrangements with one, two or more rotors, such as Roots compressor or its Wade modification, gear wheel pumps, Encke pump, sliding-vane type compressors and vane pumps, and among them the Vickers pump or the screw type pumps as for instance these of Lysholm.

Besides noted advantages specific to each of these rotary devices, an essential drawback found among most of them is that the working capacity derived from a single revolution of the rotor is at best equal to the designs i.e. geometrical capacity, of the machine (gear pumps, Encke pump, sliding-vane type single-action pumps and compressors, Lysholm compressor) and very rarely it is only slightly greater (e.g. Wankl, Radziwill, Rozycki engines; Roots, sliding-vane type double-action and screw-type three-impeller compressors). An exception among these is the hydraulic motor of Hartmann (U.S.A.) in which the working capacity is almost four-fold compared to that of design, though the latter cannot be too large for this construction. Not much better in this respect are the Breele France and the Marshall England internal combustion engines. As for the former, the working cycle repeats twice per one full revolution the rotor, and twice in the latter. However, the design capacity of these machines is utilized only once during one full rotor revolution, or twice-if the processes of suction and compression and that of work and exhaust are treated as two separate processes.

For the aforementioned reasons the working and thermal machines generally are of great weight and large dimensions, and performance indices of the given machine, such as the unit power, unit weight, flow intensity in relation to design capacity, are not always favourable and are very limited in a great many cases.

In many of the above-specified machines, as for instance in the Wankl, Radziwill or Rozycki-type engines, the active element, i.e. the rotor or the rotational piston, when revolving also has a circling motion about the axis of the main shaft which action requires for its accomplishment that cranks or planetary gearings be used. This results in a number of disadvantageous consequences, and among others in a complex form of the crankcase along its cross-sectional plane (for instance trochoid), main shaft diameter limitations in the case of a triangular piston in particular, lack of flexibility at variable loads, need for dynamic balancing, rotational speed limitations, difficulties in providing tight sealing for the working chambers, and also in the occurrence of excessive friction of the sealing elements.

Rotary devices today in use are also characterized in that they can only rarely be used for other purposes than those they have been intended. To use, for instance, a gear pump, Encke pump, vane type or a Lysholm pump, or Roots, Wade and Vickers compressors in the capacity of a hydraulic motor of a gas engine, they must be significantly redesigned to meet the newly posed requirements. The same applies, to a great extend, also to other machines specified hereinbefore. The Hartmann" hydraulic motor may be, for instance, considered for use as a pump, or compressor, but it would be rather difficult to employ this motor in the capacity of an internal combustion engine.

Moreover, the known rotary devices generally are distinguished by characteristic properties of the volumetric type working machinery or engines without simultaneously exhibiting the specific advantages of the flow-type machinery, such as rotodynamic pumps and compressors or turbines.

The Wankl, Radziwill, Rozycki orthe Weinberger machines are primarily volumetric type machines. For instance, the Encke pump, gear pumps, sliding-vane and screw-type pumps and compressors, and the Roots compressors exhibit certain features of the flow-type machines. These features are, however, not too many, reference being made to the absence of suction and delivery valves and also the fact that the suction and delivery action is a continuous process. The Marshall internal combustion engine, when considered from this point of view, if found to have additionally such features as a high operating speed and dynamic balance of the revolving elements however, the intensity of flow in this engine due to the relatively small ratio of the working volume to the design volume, and the l-lartmann" engine because of the low-speed characteristics and small design volume, is not comparable with that produced in the rotodynamic pumps and compressors or turbines. Furthermore, in the Marshall as well as Hartmann" engines suction and delivery do not represent a continuous, but a partly intermittent process, which is so because the suction passage is closed ofi by the broad ends of the rotor lugs, and in the case of Hartmann engines-there are the rotational locks on the rotor circumference that close off the inlet and the outlet ports.

Drawbacks and imperfections as pointed. out above have been to a great extent eliminated in the device as disclosed herein this invention.

The rotary device according to this invention comprises a piston rotor having on its periphery radial blades in the form of epicycloidally contoured teeth which mate with recesses in rotating cylindrical locks which recesses provide an envelope of the successive locations of the blade apex edges, so that these teeth function as pistons; also, the piston rotor is centrally mounted in a casing being seated in bearings and has rotary motion only the cylindrical locks are coupled kinematically to the piston rotor and remain in tight cooperation therewith, which locks are also mounted by way of bearings in sockets spaced radially on the periphery of the casing thus dividing the design volume of this device into any desired number of separate spaces.

ln one of the possible modifications, the device is built just as discussed above with the only difference being that the piston rotor is slidably mounted on a hollow shaft with a sleeve mating therewith and provided with a suitable socket capable of accommodating the piston rotor and with inlet or outlet passages, whereby the piston rotor may slide in or out of the corotating sleeve thus changing its active width.

The inlet and outlet passages are provided in the hollow shaft communicating with the working spaces and opening to the suction or delivery side of the piston-rotor blades, or in the case of the alternative device modification the inflow of the medium to the working spaces proceeds through the hollow shaft and then further via the piston rotor, whereas the outflow takes place by way of passage provided in the sleeve which rotates together with the rotor, or vice versa. These passages can be also disposed in a quite different way. It is, on the other hand, very important that in both these modifications there exists geometrical contact the rotor blades mating with the cavities of the cylindrical locks, which contact is simultaneously effected along three generating lines common for both the rotor blade and lock recess i.e. along the two lock recess edges and the rotor blade apex, this contact being a result of kinematics of the mating elements and their epicycloidal contours.

Such developments with regard to working machines and engines enable, depending on the number of locks for separating the design volume of the device, a full utilization of this volume during one full piston rotor rotation, where it is not only the multiple design volume that may be much better utilized than is the case with the known prior art devices, the Hartmann" hydraulic motor included, but also the working volume: design volume ratio may be suitably increased. This feature has a pronounced influence upon both the size and weight of the working machine and is no doubt a valuable advantage in those instances, in particular, where exceptionally favourable unit index values are required; this applies especially to all sorts of passenger-and goods-transport means and-to conveyor equipment.

The active element, such as the piston rotor mounted on the hollow shaft and the cylindrical locks have only rotary motion because of which the inside faces of the casing do not have a complex shape, the piston rotor and the cylindrical locks are completely dynamically balanced, and no pressures occur on the mating surfaces of these elements since their contact is purely geometrical. The hollow shaft may even be of the same diameter as the piston rotor, rotational speed of the latter being only limited by strength, are of the or drive takeoff aspects and allowable maximum rate of medium flow, and in case of internal combustion engines by the combustion rate. Sealing of the mating elements is made by the so-called "small gap" which is sufficient if the peripheral speed of the piston rotor is adequately selected and the pressure differences between neighboring working chambers are not very large; irrespective of the above this seal may be also provided in any other convenient manner.

Further, the rotary device as disclosed herein operates also as a piston machine which means that the suction and compression or delivery action takes place due to volumetric changes in the working chambers being, at the same time, a continuous process as in typical flow machines, like rotodynamic compressors and pumps or turbines and some other known rotary devices, as for instance vane pumps or sliding-vane type compressors. By retaining the ability of selfpriming and the potentiality of obtaining marked pressure increments, i.e. features that are typical for volumetric machines, this device has also some other characteristic properties typical for the flow-type machines, like a very wide range of rotational speeds, a high uniformity of these speeds, exceptionally large flow intensities, which properties are comparable only with those characteristic for rotodynamic pumps and compressors or turbines of the same capacity. The device according to this invention is also notable for its self-control ability with regard to the internal compression ratio according to the actual operating conditions, one of its modifications providing also the possibility of continuous control of flow intensity, efficiency or rotational speed with a very wide range of adjustment.

In addition, this device satisfies the condition of full universality under the most diversified applications, being used as one or more modifications of the hereinbefore mentioned working machines and engines. This is possible with small alterations introduced in the method of the feed-in and feed-off systems of the flow medium, and with plural the discussed devices combined into one integrated assembly, each of them being mounted on a common shaft and hence kinematically coupled, or else mounted separately and gas-or hydrodynamically coupled, or built also in other different combinations as an integral part of a set consisting of a compressor, piston turbine and variable-speed transmission or hydraulic motor.

An exemplary embodiment of the device according to this invention is the accompanying drawings, where:

FIG. 1 is a half elevation and half-section view of the device ofthe present invention which may be used as a compressor;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view; taken on line A-A of Fig. 1

FIG. 3 is a longitudinal cross section of a modification of this device which may be used for instance as a pump or hydraulic motor;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along lines A-A; 8-H; and C-C ofFIG. 3.

The rotary device as herein disclosed may be used as a compressor, pump, hydraulic motor or gas engine and comprises a primarily cylindrical ribbed casing l in which a piston rotor 3 is centrally located on a hollow shaft 2 and is peripherally fitted with blades 4 having the form of teeth which are epicycloidal in their contours and with generating lines parallel or skew in relation to the centerline of said hollow shaft 2. The blades 4 mate with cavities 5 made in the form ofa recess to receive the epicycloidal tooth in the cylindrical locks 6 mounted parallel to the hollow shaft 2 in peripherally spaced sockets 8 on the casing 1. The ribbed casing l is closed at. its front by an ends cover 9 and rear cover 10 in which there are mounted in bearings 11 and 12 the shafts 7 and also the hollow shaft 2, which is mounted in bearings 13 and 14 and situated centrally in relation to casing 1. Casing 1 has a hollow in which is located a separating piece 15 dividing this space into two parts; the inlet space 16 and the outlet space 17 which are sealed by means of gasket 18 and gland 19. The inlet space 16 communicates via passages 20 with the rear part of radial blades 4 rotation of piston rotor 3 being clockwise in FIG. 2, while the outlet space 17 communicates via passages 21 with the front part of these radial blades 4, both said passages, Le. 20 and 21, have been situated along a line tangent to the internal circumference of the hollow shaft 2 and extend through the blade faces 3-4. The hollow shaft 2 and shafts 7 are kinematically coupled, as by means of gear wheels 22 and 23, the gear ratio therebetween being dependent on the ratio of diameters of the piston rotor 3 and cylindrical locks 6, on the number of cylindrical locks 6 and radial blades 4-said ratio being more advantageous if the number of cylindrical locks 6 is preferably n and the number of radial blades 4 is "n+l and also on the number of cavities 5.

The modification of the device according to this invention capable of fulfilling the function of a variable-delivery pump, compressor, gas engine or hydraulic motor is shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, wherein there is a casing 24 closes by front cover 25 and rear cover 26, in which there is mounted in bearings 27 and 28 the hollow shaft 29 seated centrally in relation to casing 24 and carrying a piston rotor 30 slidably mounted thereon and fitted with radial blades 31 made in the form of epicycloidally contoured teeth mating tightly with the cavities 32 made in the cylindrical locks 33, locks 33 are mounted on shafts 34 and are located by bearings 35 and 36 in sockets 37 parallel to the hollow shaft 29 and disposed radially on the peripheries of casing 24. With the hollow shaft 29 is linked a sleeve 38 rotating in conjunction therewith and housing a socket 39 capable of accommodating said piston rotor 30, which is slidably mounted in relation to said hollow shaft 29 and sleeve 38. In the upper part of FIG. 3, the piston rotor 30 is shown in its right hand position, and in the lower part it is shown moved to the left. The inlet passage 40 being a part of the hollow shaft 29 cavity confined by insert 41, is connected by passages 42 in the piston rotor 30 to the rear part of the radial blades 31 of piston rotor 30, which rotates clockwise as shown in FIG. 4. The front part of the radial blades 31 of appertaining to piston rotor 30 is connected by passages 43 in said sleeve 38 to an annular space 44 in the front cover 25 and further to outlet 45. On the opposite side of said sleeve 38, just behind the piston rotor 30 seated on the hollow shaft 29 there is mounted slidably a push rod 46 which under the a fluid pressure medium fed by way of port 47 moves the piston rotor 30 inside the sleeve 38 thus diminishing the active width of the piston rotor 30. Fluid pressure medium fed by port 48 pushes the pistonrotor 30 out of sleeve 38. Kinematic coupling of the hollow shaft 29 carrying the piston rotor 30, and the shafts 34 carrying the cylindrical locks 33 is effected by means of gear wheels 49 and 50.

The principle of operation of the apparatus herein disclosed directly results from the above description of the exemplary constructional embodiments. This operation is in principle the same for both modifications presented herein.

With the rotating piston rotor 3 or 30, in case they are the driven elements powered from an external source which case is usual, for instance, when the apparatus acts as a compressor or pump, all the working volumes on the suction side (i.e. rear side in relation to rotor rotations) of the radial blades 4 or 31 increase whereas those on the delivery side (i.e. front side in relation to rotor rotations) of radial blades 4 or 31 decrease at the same time. As a consequence of this, fluid is taken in from the inlet space 16, or 40 by respective passages 20 or 42 in the piston rotor 3 or 30 and flows out in a continuous manner onto the suction side of radial blades 4 or 31 thus filling simultaneously all the increasing working volumes. At the same time, it is the delivery side of the radial blades 4 or 31 that compresses the medium in the decreasing working volumes forcing it in a continuous manner via passages 21 in the piston rotor 3 to the outlet space 17,-or by way of passages 43 in the sleeve 38, rotating along with piston rotor, to the annular space 44 and further to the outlet 45. The suction side is separated in the working spaces, on the one hand, by the apex edge of the rotor blades 3 or 30 travelling along the internal surface of easing l or 24, or along the inside surface of cavities 5 or 32 of the cylindrical locks 6 or 33, and on the other hand, by the linear contact of the outside surfaces of the cylindrical locks 6 or 33 with those of the piston rotor 3 or 30, or else by the linear contact of the edge of cavities 5 or 32 of the cylindrical locks 6 or 33 with the outer surfaces of rotor blades 4 or 31. This separation is, at the same time, a seal for the suction side.

The operation of the apparatus in case it is employed as a hydraulic motor or gas engine is similar, with the only difference being that the flowing medium is fed to the apparatus identically as before i.e. under pressure acting on the rear side of all the radial blades 4 or 3]; simultaneously it results in the rotation of the piston rotor 3 or 30 and thereby also in the increase of respective working volumes where it undergoes decompression being simultaneously forced out in a continuous manner from all the remaining diminishing working spaces via the front face of each subsequent radial blade 4 or 31.

Piston rotor 30 moving in relation to sleeve 38 which rotates along with it, brings about an alteration in the active width of the piston rotor 30 and cylindrical locks 33, and hence also a change in all the working volumes of the device, at the same time. In the case of a pump or compressor, a continuous regulation of the intensity of flow is in such a way achieved within very wide operating limits, while in the case of a hydraulic motor or gas engine operating in a closed-loop system with a constant-delivery pump or compressor a wide possibility of rotational speed control is created, too.

it is also possible to operate the device according to this invention as an internal combustion engine in a variety of modifications, and in particular a modification where the compressor is connected with the decompressor (gas engine) by way of suitable combustion chambers and some alterations are made in the feed and exhaust systems; each unit of such an assembly is operating on the principle as described before. The combination of the compressor and decompressor may be implemented in a number of ways, as mentioned before.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that the herespecified exemplary embodiments of the rotary device according to this invention do not exhaust all the feasible design potentialities which may add much to the subject invention by developing it still further. For instance the kinematic coupling of the rotor shaft and lock shafts may be achieved by means of an assembly of friction wheels and other types of transmission; the movement of the rotor in relation to sleeve may be implemented by a mechanical or pneumatic method, while the inlet and outlet passages can be made so as to bypass the rotor shaft and form a system of adequate interstices. It is also to be understood that the above-mentioned method of combining said devices into sets or bigger assemblies, capable of fulfilling various functions, by no means exhaust all the variant potentialities.

What we claim is: l. A rotary expansible chamber device comprising: a casing having a primarily cylindrical cross section and a plurality of peripherally spaced parallel sockets, piston rotor means coaxially rotatably mounted in said casing and comprising a plurality of generally radially extending blades, cylindrical lock means rotatably mounted in each said socket having recess means for receiving said blades as said rotor means and lock means rotate, inlet passage means extending from a fluid inlet through the rear face of each said blade, and outlet passage means extending through the front face of each said blade to a fluid outlet. 2. The rotary expansible chamber device of claim 1,

wherein said blades are of epicycloidal contour.

3. The rotary expansible chamber device of claim 1, said piston rotor means being centrally hollow, said fluid inlet and fluid outlet being connected to said hollow, means in said hollow dividing said hollow into inlet and outlet spaces, said inlet passage means being connected to said inlet space and said outlet passage means being connected to said outlet space.

4. The rotary expansible chamber device of claim I, wherein said casing cylindrical cross section and said recess means of said lock means define an envelope of the path of the tips of said blades.

5. The rotary expansible chamber device of claim 1, wherein there is one more blade than there are cylindrical lock means.

6. The rotary expansible chamber device of claim 1, and further comprising means mounting said blades for axial movement relative to said lock means, and means for axially moving said blades.

7. A rotary expansible chamber device comprising:

a casing having a primarily cylindrical cross section and a plurality of peripherally spaced parallel sockets,

piston rotor means coaxially rotatably mounted in said casing and comprising a plurality of generally radially extending blades,

cylindrical lock means rotatably mounted on in each said socket having recess means for receiving said blades as said rotor means and lock means rotate,

passage means for introducing fluid rearwardly of each blade and for removing fluid from forwardly of each blade,

said blades each having an epicycloidal contour. 

1. A rotary expansible chamber device comprising: a casing having a primarily cylindrical cross section and a plurality of peripherally spaced parallel sockets, piston rotor means coaxially rotatably mounted in said casing and comprising a plurality of generally radially extending blades, cylindrical lock means rotatably mounted in each said socket having recess means for receiving said blades as said rotor means and lock means rotate, inlet passage means extending from a fluid inlet through the rear face of each said blade, and outlet passage means extending through the front face of each said blade to a fluid outlet.
 2. The rotary expansible chamber device of claim 1, wherein said blades are of epicycloidal contour.
 3. The rotary expansible chamber device of claim 1, said piston rotor means being centrally hollow, said fluid inlet and fluid outlet being connected to said hollow, means in said hollow dividing said hollow into inlet and outlet spaces, said inlet passage means being connected to said inlet space and said outlet passage means being connected to said outlet space.
 4. The rotary expansible chamber device of claim 1, wherein said casing cylindrical cross section and said recess means of said lock means define an envelope of the path of the tips of said blades.
 5. The rotary expansible chamber device of claim 1, wherein there is one more blade than there are cylindrical lock means.
 6. The rotary expansible chamber device of claim 1, and further comprising means mounting said blades for axial movement relative to said lock means, and means for axially moving said blades.
 7. A rotary expansible chamber device comprising: a casing having a primarily cylindrical cross section and a plurality of peripherally spaced parallel sockets, piston rotor means coaxially rotatably mounted in said casing and comprising a plurality of generally radially extending blades, cylindrical lock means rotatably mounted on in each said socket having recess means for receiving said blades as said rotor means and lock means rotate, passage means for introducing fluid rearwardly of each blade and for removing fluid from forwardly of each blade, said blades each having an epicycloidal contour. 